Oof. That one hurt. Ya stay up for 3OT's and consider drinking a Mike's Hard Lemonade Lite just to see the Blues win that game. Didn't feel good. But it's tough to win a game when 5.1 periods are played and you only score goals in 1 of them. Give the Blues credit, they made the adjustment after the first period and made the Blackhawks play a dump and chase game, an offense that isn't their go to. Sharp had a lot of great chances, but Miller stopped them all. He looked shaky in the first period but really settled in, which is scary for the Hawks. There were some positives though: the penalty kill unit did shockingly well, Crow absolutely stood on his head the most of the game, we won the majority of face-offs, and a lot of shots were really close to being goals, those will go in the net eventually. But that's a big win for St. Louis, especially without Oshie. Just gotta regroup and take this next game Saturday. No more garbage goals, time to turn it up into second gear, because this is gonna be a long, gut-wrenching series.
PS - Did the #bucciovertimechallenge for the Av's game (great game) and almost picked Stasny, but changed my mind and picked O'Reilly last second. Sure enough, Stasny throws the game winner in the net. Fuck me.
ESPN - Lorde has finally met George Brett, the inspiration for her hit song “Royals.” A story that started with the click of a shutter before a baseball game in 1976 came full circle in Las Vegas on Tuesday night, when Lorde met Brett, the baseball Hall of Famer whose photo in an old magazine helped launch her singing career.
In case you don't know the story: A teenage girl in New Zealand, aspiring to a music career, comes across Ted Spiegel's photo of George Brett in a 1976 issue of National Geographic. The photo of a young, smiling Brett in his home Royals jersey, surrounded by autograph seekers holding brand-new baseballs, inspires the girl's song about missing out on the lifestyles of the rich and famous. The song becomes a worldwide hit, wins multiple Grammy awards, and turns the 17-year-old girl from Auckland into a star.
When a hoped-for meeting in March didn't materialize, the Royals sent Lorde an autographed Brett jersey. This time, she got to meet her inspiration in person -- and tied a bow on a story that took 38 years and two continents to complete.
So in case anyone was unaware of this, Lorde's inspiration for naming her song Royals came from seeing this photo of George Brett:
which seems pretty fucking ridiculous to me. I mean yeah, it's a cool picture of our Buddy Jorge, but it's got me thinking is this what all musicians do? They get some serious writer's block and look at pictures to help inspire them? Why hasn't a song been written about me yet then? I have a TON of great pictures of me. In fact, I'll take some right now to prove it.
Here's a song that could be called: "Overweight Aspiring Blogger is Depressed Over His Lack of Job Prospects"
Here's another song that could be called, "Just Spotted Some Thin Mints!"
This last one can only really be called, "Cat."
(I had to make it with arrows, but you get the idea.)
So here ya go Lorde, there's some fresh new material for you to name your songs after. Have your call people call my people (my mom) and we'll see where it goes.
PS - Be on the lookout for my parody of "Royals" called "Hungry" based on this photo of Mike Tyson.
PPS - Do people think Lorde is hot? Or is she one of those girls where her friends say, "she has a great voice and personality!" I'm thinking the latter. Don't get me wrong I would, but only for the story.
Well the matchup is set. The Bobcats will be taking on the Heat in the first round of the playoffs. Do I like it? Of course not, but I do believe that this is going to be a competitive series. Yes I know the heat are unreal, but at the same time, they have been awwwwwful lately. The heat have some major questions to answer before the first game of this series. Such as who is going to guard Al Jefferson? I know Al is getting to be an old man, but he is playing like a All-Star this year avg 22.0 ppg and 10.8 rpg. If you are going to sit there and tell me that Greg Oden is going to D up Al Jefferson, then you have lost your mind. Greg Oden is complete trash, always has been, always will be. Oh and we haven't even gotten to the fact that Kemba is proving to be the best draft pick in the history of the franchise. Kemba this year is avg 17.6 ppg and 6.1 apg. You cant really ask much more out of your point guard than that. Just look at what he did tonight against the bulls, 8 of his 22 points in OT to secure what at the time was a big win because they were still chasing the 6 seed. However all this being said, I will give the heat the credit that they deserve. The fact is that they still are defending back to back champions, and that means they are going to be super tough to beat at home. Should be a really interesting series, even if the Heat do end up sweeping the Cats or only allowing it to go 5.
Prediction: Incase you didn't know I usually have pretty realistic expectations, so with that in mind here is my prediction for this series. Call me crazy, but this series reminds me of the Mavs vs Warriors series in 2007 when Dallas was the 1 seed. I just see young up and coming team that has that one veteran to lead them to a huge upset, similar to the way the Warriors had Al Harrington. The Heat are going to continue to play like shit and the Bobcats will take them down.
Bobcats in 7
P.S- I think I just lost my credibility as a realistic fan
Figure I'd give you all an idea of what I have been up to these past months although I'm sure no one actually cares. Also, this blog post may not be that funny, so I'm sorry for that.
As jer eluded to, I was in Dallas for the Final Four game against Florida and well that was just amazing due to UConn winning. And for all you Cowboys fans (which is probably no one), AT&T stadium is unreal. Like bravo Jerry Jones, you really nailed it. I did fly home for the National Championship game and later went on to celebrate UConn's dual National Championships (no big deal) on back to back nights. It's safe to say that my grades suffered mightily from this stretch of winning and partying.
(biggest smile I have ever had)
I also started to write for the sbnation blog for uconn, theuconnblog (theuconnblog.com) with my two roommates, Mark and Ben, so that has been a pretty neat gig to say the least. We started in January and have contributed numerous articles about UConn Men's Basketball. Since the next main sport that we would cover would be UConn football, and not too many people care about that, I'll most likely be focusing my attention way more on waymore (see what i did there).
And those two paragraphs pretty much sum up my life from January until now so that's really not exciting at all but hey that's life.
I know tj is most likely visiting UConn this weekend and i guess jer may or may not be joining him-not really sure what the deal is but either way it will probably be a shitshow which is always a good time and I'm sure you'll hear some stories about it. Maybe even get a picture of the three of us that shows what we actually look like which is definitely not this anymore:
Well, as everyone saw with TJ's last blog, the school year is winding down and the blog is starting back up again. Since the other pieces of shit that blog for this site are probably not planning on posting for awhile, I figured I would give an update on how everyone is doing.
Myself:
Really not much of a change here, besides the fact that I have put on roughly 20 pounds and still continuing to lose my hair at a rapid pace. I shave maybe once a week and even that is a stretch. It's getting to the point at school now where I have basically given up on doing well and am really just going through the motions. That's really all I can say, I am still just that average guy who really doesn't have that much to offer.
TJ:
Haven't seen this guy since winter break, but from what I can gather from our snap chats and texts he too has gained weight. God knows if he has changed his sheets yet this semester but for his sake we can all hope he has. Just in case we all forgot this is the guy I am referring too.
Tim AKA Mr. Tough Guy:
Just so everyone knows Tim is Mr. Tough Guy. I don't think this was every addressed but I am glad I could put it out on the table. He claims he has been going to the gym and working out, but I don't believe him for one second. We all know about the one on one pick up game that Tim and I have coming up and he is just trying to get in my head...zero chance of that happening ever. This is our boy on the left...complete psycho.
DJ:
Well we all learned something new about DJ during this March madness, he is officially the worst Providence fan in the history of the school. The kid picked UNC in the first round to beat PC...yeah you read correctly, he picked AGAINST his schools team in the first round. I didn't even think picking against your favorite team in the first round was allowed? Absolute craziness happening up their at PC, I just hope he learned his lesson, when he had to root for UNC in a real barn burner that that game was.
Henry:
Still an Intern... Still a Broncos fan...and still not doing his job. No picture needed
Matt:
I have no clue what matt has been up to, other than him going to the national semi final game to see UConn play Florida. Congrats to the Huskies Matt.
PS- I will be making trips to all of our bloggers schools, TJ at Loyola in Baltimore, Timmy, DJ, and Henry at Providence, and Matt over there at UConn. My plan is to make a video at each of the schools doing some type of challenge so stayed tuned. What those challenges are I could not tell you, but I guess we will all find out next Thursday when I hit the road with TJs parents to get to Loyola
Hello Way More Readers! Allow me to start this blog by apologizing for the four month hiatus from the blog, but the pursuit of higher education* is time consuming and never stops, you know the drill. But I digress. THE NHL PLAYOFFS ARE FINALLY BACK! Yes it is indeed the most wonderful time of the year, Spring is blooming, birds are chirping, and I have yet another excuse to sit on my couch at nights getting belligerently drunk for really no reason at all. A lot has happened since my last NHL weekly recap, but all anyone really needs to know is that Tyler Seguin went on an absolute tear in the West putting the Dallas Stars in the #1 wildcard position, while the Columbus Blue Jackets also caught fire at the right time and moved up to the #1 wildcard spot, mainly thanks to stellar goal keeping from Sergei Bobrovsky. The new playoff format has really created some interesting matchups, so I'll expalin that really quick. Instead of being eight teams in NBA conference fashion, the playoffs now are the first three teams from each division. Then two teams reach the wildcard spot by being the next two best teams after the first six. So, to give you an example, the Central finishes up with 1.) Colorado Avalanche 2.) St. Louis Blues 3.) Chicago Blackhawks. Those 3 make the playoffs where the Blues and Chicago play while the Avalanche get to play either the first wildcard team depending on if they are the first or second team in the whole conference. You'll understand more as you read on, so let's do some breakdowns.
Starting with the East:
vs.
Atlantic #1 Boston Bruins Wildcard #2 Detroit Red Wings
The Bruins are just far and away the better team in this one. Tuukka Rask is a top 3 goalie in the NHL and Charra has had one of his best seasons defensively this year. If Boston controls the tempo of the game to set up chances for guys like Lucic and Krejci, this could easily be a sweep. Detroit's only chance is for them to keep Boston off balance defensively and use the speed that Datsyuk provides them to provide scoring opportunities. Jimmy Howard has been battling a knee injury all year, and I believe is one of the more overrated goalies in the game, so shouldn't be a real brick wall in the net.
Prediction: I don't like the Bruins, I despise the Blues, but man oh man do I hate the Red Wings. Boston is gonna be way too much to handle, but I'll say the Wings win one in "Hockey Town."
B's in 5
vs.
Atlantic #2 Tampa Bay Lightning Atlantic #3 Montreal Canadiens
This is gonna be a really exciting matchup to watch. Both teams are playing good puck right now, both being 7-3-0 in their last ten games each. The Canadiens traded with the Islanders for Thomas Vanek at the trade deadline year, who has been a huge help. Kid is an absolute gamer coming out of the University of Minnesota who has great ice presence and just knows where to be out there. The Lightning also made a big move at the trade deadline by trading Martin St. Louis to the Rangers for Ryan Callahan, who looks rejuvenated since the move to Florida. He's not St. Louis offensively, but he brings a lot of experience and leadership to this Lightning squad.
Prediction: Both teams healthy, this would be a really close series. Unfortunately for us fans, the Lightning aren't. Stamkos has been sporting a broken leg injury for almost the whole season which caused him to drop out of this year's Olympic games. Goalie Ben Bishop of the Lightning is still considered questionable for this series, which is bad news considering he finished this year with a 2.23 GAA and .927 SV%. The Lightning may have to rely on backup Ander Lindback, who went 7-12-2 this year. Combine that with the fact that Montreal goalie Carey Price is another top 3 goalie who won the gold medal for Team Canada and I think this series is over pretty quickly. Habs in 5.
vs.
Metropolitan #1 Pittsburgh Penguins Wildcard #2 Columbus Blue Jackets
First glance people may think this is going to be a wash of a series, but I really don't think it is. The Blue Jackets are not a bad team and have played some really good hockey as of late. Bobrovsky won the Vezina Trophy last season and put up another really impressive year with a .923 SV%. Columbus also doesn't have a terrible offense, and Pittsburgh certainly doesn't have a Stanley Cup defense. Fleury is known to be a choke artist in the playoffs too, which should prove interesting to watch.
Prediction: That all being said, the Penguins still have Crosby and Malkin. Arguably the best duo in hockey, these two create absolute havoc for opposing defenses and goalies. Penguins also have playoff experience, while this is the Blue Jackets' first trip to the playoffs since 2009. The series will be kind of like Islanders Penguins was last year, with a very similar result. Penguins in 6.
vs.
Metropolitan #2 New York Rangers Metropolitan #3 Philadelphia Flyers
I LOVE this matchup. This is gonna be the best matchup in the east this first round. Two cities that absolutely hate each other in every sport, with two of the most brutal fanbases in America. You're gonna be able to make a necklace with all of the teeth that get punched out of peoples' heads during this series. As for the hockey, it's gonna be tight the whole way. Claude Giroux is a fuckin' sniper who can launch pucks top shelf better than anyone else in the game. But he has to score those goals on King Henrik Lundqvist, who I guess is alright? The Flyers defense isn't great, but neither are New York's forwards, especially Martin St. Louis who has really struggled to produce since the trade. Each team has weaknesses that could cost them this series.
Predictions: This matchup is a putting a bunch of bruisers on the ice and watching them just fight a real war out there. Expect injuries, fights, OT games and shootouts. Everyone should watch this series because this is going to be a bloodbath. In the end, despite Giroux's excellence, Lundqvist will be too much with McDonagh on D and I think the Rangers manage to get by the first round, but barely. Rangers in 7.
On to the West:
vs.
Pacific #1 Anaheim Ducks Wildcard #2 Dallas Stars
Battle of the D's (no homo). This matchup could be interesting if Dallas goalie Kari Lehtonen stands on his head and boasts a SV% of >.93, considering the Ducks throw an average of 31.6 shots on goal per game thanks to Canadian olympian Ryan Getzlaf and Cory Perry. The Stars will rely heavily on Seguin to provide them with scoring opportunities and goals, which is possible because no single goalie on the Ducks has been really incredible.
Prediction: Again, this series could be fun to watch, but I think Getzlaf and Perry are too much for this young Stars defense. Dallas will do enough to win 1, but ultimately the Ducks take this no problem. Ducks in 5.
vs.
Pacific #2 San Jose Sharks Pacific #3 Los Angeles Kings
Man the western conference is awesome. How in the hell is this a first round matchup? Two teams that could win the Cup forced to duke it out in the first round. San Jose brings an incredible offense to the table, with Joe Thornton leading the way and seems to have an assist in almost every game he plays, while Pavelski is their to rack up goals. The Kings aren't as deep on O as the Sharks, but have Drew Doughty coming back to the ice healthy. If they can cause problems on offense, then they should be able to hold off the Sharks.
Prediction: A shame that one of these two teams has to go early. Both teams are so good and I think this comes down to one thing: goalies. Niemi for the Sharks has a ring from 2010 with the Blackhawks but hasn't been the same since, while Johnathan Quick has proven to be consistently a top-tier goalie who doesn't go down easily. Shots will have to be perfect for the Sharks to score on Quick, and considering the Sharks haven't proven to be the best playoff team, I think the Kings end another chance for the Sharks. Kings in 7.
vs.
Central #1 Colorado Avalanche Wildcard #1 Minnesota Wild
This Avalanche team is good. Scary good. They remind me so much of the 2010 Blackhawks team that won the cup it's scary. Young guys who will skate teams right off the ice. MacKinnon has put together an unreal year at forward, along with O'Reilly. But Duchene may not play this series, and he's one of Colorado's best skaters and scorers. With him out it will allow Suter on defense for the Wild to potentially disrupt the Avalance offense and give Parise a chance to win these games at forward. This one could be close.
Prediction: The Avalanche win if goalie Varlamov plays a good series. Doesn't have to play out of his mind, but just consistently good hockey. Goal tending is Minnesota's weak point as they've started four different guys in net all year. Some people believe the Wild could be that #7 seed upset, but I don't. Avalanche in 6.
vs.
Central #2 St. Louis Blues Central #3 Chicago Blackhawks
Well this is it. This is the matchup that will make me bite all my fingernails off, holes in the wall, copious amounts of beer to be drank, and hopefully, unbelievable joy seeing the Hawks move on. The Blues are banged up coming into the playoffs. American Olympians TJ Oshie and David Backes are hurt but expected to be back, but Brendan Morrow won't, leaving some deep holes in St. Louis' forward depth. That being said, Kane and Toews both enter this series coming off of injuries, but have been given plenty of time to rest and should be fully healthy by the puck drop. St. Louis has Ryan Miller who's a proven veteran but has struggled late, and has to face Toews, Hossa, Sharp, Kane, Keith, and Smith. Offensively the Hawks have the advantage, but solid play from Miller could make this series difficult to win.
Prediction: The Blues have been on a really bad slide to end the year. You never want to be cold going into the playoffs. Coupled with the injuries to their lines of forwards, the Blues could be in trouble. The Hawks meanwhile are terrible on the penalty kill, so if they want to win they have to stay out of the box, especially considering Crawford isn't even close to being the goalie he was last year. All that said, I think the Hawks take this series and win it in the Madhouse on Madison. Hawks in 6.
So there ya have it, sorry it was so wordy but this will obviously go down as the playoffs go on. This is going to be an exciting year for playoff hockey, so gear up and get ready to get sloppy. Let's do it and bring this cup back to Chi-raq. PLAYOFF HAWKEY BABY!!
*Getting drunk enough to be able to cope with the absurd amount of work we have
